Atheists Hated

[electric_sheep]

I know there have been some threads on here regarding irate atheists, bashing Christianity and other believers. Some Christians claim to be baffled by the hard feelings and ill will, not knowing where they could possibly come from.

 

I've been an atheist/agnostic since about the age of 15, and I can tell you that I have almost never felt like I fit in. The one exception was when I was in graduate school for Chemistry, where a majority of people are atheist, agnostic, or have non-traditional beliefs. At least it was rare for them to profess to having traditional beliefs, which I suppose could be construed as a sort of embarrassment. Regardless, feeling like you are out of step with the rest of society for the majority of your life can cause one to be defensive.

 

Yes, atheists are essentially a discriminated group in American society. They are not trusted, viewed with suspicion, looked down upon, and they illicit vitriol and anger in many ordinary Americans. I think the attitude of many atheists needs to be considered in this light. Almost any group that feels like it is disliked and discriminated against will take a defensive attitude (which sometimes includes taking an offensive attitude).

 

This I always knew. It is just a part of being an atheist in the South. Tonight though, I had much of these suspicions confirmed while watching a documentary, which mentioned this interesting study:

 

http://atheism.about.com/od/atheistbigotryprejudice/a/AtheitsHated.htm

 

Atheists are apparently the least trusted group in America.

50% of American said they would never vote for an atheist, regardless of how qualified he was.

 

"...the numbers are so extreme that she [the researcher] was led to conclude that atheists are "a glaring exception to the rule of increasing tolerance over the last 30 years.""

 

"Every group except atheists is being shown much greater tolerance and acceptance than 30 years ago. "Our analysis shows that attitudes about atheists have not followed the same historical pattern as that for previously marginalized religious groups.""

 

Don't think we didn't know this all along. Now, in this light, is so hard to imagine why some atheists might have developed a bit of attitude? I know I had one, when I was younger. I'm not saying it's good to have an attitude, I'm just saying it's not surprising among groups that are looked down upon and/or mistreated.

[Moose]

Some Christians claim to be baffled by the hard feelings and ill will, not knowing where they could possibly come from.

Maybe some do, but as the saying goes, "you reap what you sow"....this rule applies across the board, atheist or Christian, or Jew, or Muslim, and so on....

 

Your attention has just been heightened on your particular position....that's all.....

[disgracian]

Set me straight M, because I'm reading that as a little too close to "everyone deserves what they get". I'm (optimistically) sure you don't mean that though.

 

Cheers,

D.

[Lovelybird]

The impression this LS board gave me is that most of persons here are atheists. Believers are rare, according to what they think and say

[Green]

I don't get it? Athiests are hated? it seems like most religious people love talking to atheists. and to take the context of athiesm out of your argument and just look at it as traditional vs untraditional... traditional will always be more common... isnt that what defines it as traditional?

[Rooster_DAR]

Atheists are apparently the least trusted group in America.

50% of American said they would never vote for an atheist, regardless of how qualified he was.

 

It's really sad, but we are the minority here. I wish I could live until the day that can vote for someone who finally understands who we are and where we come from. I would gladly vote for an atheist candidate, however I would not base my vote on that alone. I still think people who believe in god or Christ are good people, and Christianity has seemed to work for a long time.

 

I think it's going to be a long time before people are comfortable with embracing life without divine intervention, but I'm certain it will happen in generations to come.

 

Cheers!

[FleshNBones]

What nonsense.

Some people want minority status so they can lead a more privledged life.

[fral945]

I don't believe atheists are the most hated or discriminated against in general. Although I do believe in politics atheists are by far the most discriminated against. But then again, that's a byproduct of a religious majority making up the general voting population.

 

I'm agnostic, and I feel isolated (because I'm in a minority), but rarely ever hated by religious folks. I think Muslim extremists and religious fundamentalists who kill innocent people are the most hated. Most atheists who live their lives without bothering anyone are unlikely to be the most hated. Although admittedly outspoken atheists who try to censure and eliminate religion from a religious majority society are definitely going to be met with a lot of hate and resistance.

 

I think your viewpoint is a byproduct of where you live. The Southern U.S. (where you and I both live) is the most religious region in a country which is the most religious of almost any developed country. It is obvious to conclude that atheists & agnostics are going to be one of the least accepted groups. I think if you have strong views about anything and you are outspoken about it, you will have people on the other end of the spectrum that respond with hate and vitriol. Especially when it comes to religion, because for many people that defines their lives. From people I've talked to big cities on the West Coast and in the Northeast tend to be more non-religious and accepting of atheists.

 

I tend not to mention my lack of belief in general conversation because I almost always get a negative reaction. I've been open about it in the past and been burned enough to keep my mouth shut for the most part and avoid the subject of religion altogether, especially with the fundamentalist types. Like I said, don't really feel hate, just isolation. People are free to discriminate against me based on my lack of religion. I do the same to them sometimes. It doesn't matter that much to me anyway, because I am fairly indifferent about religion. As long as people are somewhere between moderately religious and moderately atheist I am usually ok with them. Extremists views (atheist or religious) scare me the most and are usually difficult to deal with.

 

Of course, you have to remember that the U.S. is one of the most religious developed societies in the world (and very much an exception in that regard). Most nations become more secular as they become more developed and better educated. Western Europe, the Scandinavian countries, France, etc. are examples and they are some of the least religious. I actually read an interesting book that says the world is becoming more desecularized (i.e., more religious). The argument is that while developed societies are becoming less religious in general, undeveloped agrarian societies tend to be far more religious and have a much higher reproduction rate than secular societies.

[Rooster_DAR]

What nonsense.

Some people want minority status so they can lead a more privledged life.

 

Huh? ............